


Where The Art Is

by audiaphilios



Series: From Tumblr With Lo-- [7]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: F/F, I Blame Tumblr, Rare Pairings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-01
Updated: 2016-06-01
Packaged: 2018-07-11 12:44:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7052044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/audiaphilios/pseuds/audiaphilios
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Years after Georgia turns down the college student with the unfortunate crush, she finds herself at the exhibit of an artist she's been collecting for years now.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Where The Art Is

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Wheel_of_fortune](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wheel_of_fortune/gifts).



> Blame this entirely on @wheeloffortune-designs' Ask prompt:
> 
> "You like rarepairs, you seen any Lardo / George? Competency in the face of hockey bro adversity! Lardo having the huuuugest crush on George, Georgia feeling bad because of the age difference, but then they meat again years down the line when Lardo is a bigshot artist, at one of her expositions when Jack and Bitty invite everyone they know."
> 
> [Originally posted to tumblr June 1, 2016.](http://audiaphilios.tumblr.com/post/145234328425/you-like-rarepairs-you-seen-any-lardo-george)

Seriously, though, What If George has been collecting Lardo’s art for years without realizing who it was. Like, she saw some work in Jack and Bitty’s place, saw the signature and looked up this “Larissa Duan” and found her work at a Boston gallery, but never connected the name to Lardo-the-stunning-young-thing who’d had a crush on her back in Jacks’ first year, who kind of fell off the map after she’d graduated from Samwell.

(And thankfully so, because Lardo had been at a lot of Jack and Bitty’s shindigs that first year, and George felt seriously guilty about finding her attractive, because of the age difference and the fact that George _had a partner_ , but they’d had really good conversations about art and managing the overgrown children that are hockey players, and the one time Lardo went for it and kissed George was the last time they saw one another, because George was just horrified at what she’d allowed and probably encouraged.)

Anyway, George and her partner end up splitting later, unrelated to George or her brief fascination with the younger woman (well, that kind of made her realize she wasn’t really in the relatioship as much as she thought, and when her partner started talking marriage and kids, well…), and so she’s single again, and has been collecting this art for maybe a year or two, maybe three, now. And maybe Bitty and Jack have never come over, or they’ve never mentioned anything even if they have (Lardo may have explained honestly why she stopped coming to team events after she graduated and moved to Boston). They’re not sure if George knows just who she’s buying from, or if there’s some kind of serious pining going on. But when they do overhear George talking about the art, and how powerful and moving she finds it, she seems entirely unaware of the connection.

So Bitty, romantic that he is, misguided though he may be, mentions that he’s heard about the artist having an expo in Boston– his friend Shitty, you remember him? He mentioned the name. And George is thrilled and a little scared, because what if she gets to meet this Larissa? What if she makes a fool of herself? What if she actually starts talking about all the feelings the art gives her and doesn’t know how to shut up. George, the supremely chill Power That Be, is entirely unchill about this prospect. But she goes, of course she does.

And there she’s so focused on the new pieces that she’s not even worried about finding the artist, because so much of the artist is here in the work, and she can’t even begin to decide where to start buying. It feels almost dirty, if she thinks about it, how she needs to own these pieces of art-and-artist, because something about it just speaks to her, and she wants to have those conversations at home, in her space. And then there’s a voice behind her, low and snarky and a bit shaken, maybe, deadpan chirping her about maybe hosting the next show, with all she’s buying tonight? And George turns.

And it’s Lardo, bro-y Lardo in all black and perfectly lined eyes and 25 or 26 by now, and it’s all George can do not to fall at her feet. Because–

“You? You’re Larissa Duan? I’ve been…”

And here it is, George is massively embarrassed because she turned this woman down years ago but has been obsessively buying her art ever since, and how does one even begin to explain that? Can she? Should she?

And Lardo smiles, lopsided, and says, “I know. The gallery kind of keeps a record of that. I didn’t know if you knew.”

“I…had no idea. I’m, sorry?”

“For buying my art? Chyeah, like that _hurt_.”

“Well, then, I’m sorry for anything that did hurt.”

And that smile broadens a bit before disappearing beneath the aloof cool of the artist, and Lardo says, “I notice you didn’t even make it to the bar. Let me get you a beer.”

And there’s the woman she knew years ago, and had such easy conversation with, clearly remembering that despite the stemless glasses being handled carefully all over the gallery that Georgia can’t stand wine. And a little star-struck despite herself, George follows happily, if dazed.

On the opposite side of the room, Bitty looks on with a smile before turning back to Jack and the painting they’ve just bought.


End file.
